News article on the bild.de about a Marabu 320 with significant engine fire damage. Pictures and article behind a paywall but well worth the few euros to view
English translation by the Googles:
These are images that the Condor sister airline Marabu would probably prefer to keep secret: During the flight from Malaga (Spain) to Munich last Tuesday, a spark plug came loose and emitted hot gas against the casing and cables.According to information from BILD, the engine fire warning light came on just five minutes after takeoff last Tuesday (July 17). The pilot considered making an emergency landing. However, the light then went off. The Airbus 320neo with the registration ES-MBA had already displayed several "spurious alerts" before, as stated by a Marabu pilot to BILD. These are false warnings, such as a screen flickering that lasts only a fraction of a second and then disappears.
This time, it was not a false alarm...
Nevertheless, the pilot continued the flight after the engine fire warning disappeared, according to an insider quoted by BILD. The flight from Spain to the Bavarian capital lasts 2.50 hours. Meanwhile, the loose spark plug was affecting the engine. An anonymous pilot told BILD, "It's like the boy who cried wolf. When false alarms are triggered too often, a real emergency won't be recognized."
According to BILD's information, neither the crew nor the passengers noticed anything about the defect. It was only when the engine was inspected on the ground that the shock occurred: heat damage had eaten into the casing and cables.
In response to a query from BILD, Marabu stated, "In one of the engines of the aircraft ES-MBA, a spark plug came loose on July 17, and hot gas leaked, leaving soot traces. The engine did not catch fire, but it was damaged. The engine is currently being repaired. This repair will be completed in August, partly due to longer delivery times for spare parts. Based on the current findings, there was no danger for either the passengers or the crew."
The anonymous pilot told BILD, "I see it differently; flight safety was disregarded here. This could have ended in a tragedy."
The airline spokeswoman contradicted and wrote, "The cockpit crew checked the aircraft according to the protocols provided for this case. This check revealed that all engine measurements were normal. Therefore, the flight to Munich was continued as planned."
Tone in management email gets harsher
Last Sunday, the management of Marabu addressed the fire internally via email. BILD has obtained the message. The tone is harsher: "Last week, during a flight from Malaga to Munich, we received an engine fire warning in our aircraft ES-MBA. The crew handled the situation as expected, and the aircraft landed in Munich without injuries or obvious damage to the aircraft.
Soot traces and melting points on the cables. The black marks are soot from burned aircraft fuel. "That doesn't happen just from hot air," said an insider to BILD.
In the past few days, inspections of engine number 2 were carried out. The hot air from the spark plug caused "damage to engine accessories." Additionally, various cables in the engine were severely damaged.
The management's goal is to get the aircraft back in service quickly. The insider told BILD, "It will take even longer until the aircraft can fly again."